As established by various studies, it is recognized that cholesterol and triglycerides play a major role in the formation of arteriosclerotic plaques by accelerating the deposition of blood lipids in the arterial wall.
Various para(aryl(alkyl)amino)benzoic acids, esters, and salts thereof have been described as useful in lowering the serum lipid levels in mammals. See Dutch Patent Application No. 7,602,332 filed Sept. 14, 1976. Although this publication describes a number of substituted and unsubstituted benzylamino benzoic acids which may be used to lower the serum lipid levels in rodents, these compounds are not necessarily useful in lowering lipid levels in primates. Hypolipidemic activity in primates cannot be predicted from data collected in rats. Therefore compounds found to be highly active in the rat are not necessarily of use in lowering serum lipid levels in a primate. For example, the compounds 4-((4-chlorophenylmethyl)amino)benzoic acid and 4-((2-fluorophenylmethyl)amino)benzoic acid are known to be active hypolipidemic agents in rats, but neither compound shows activity in primates.